Lost and Found
by snort
Summary: Luke and Mara embark on an unusual mission to an unknown planet. Of course, things go awry.
1. Don't Abuse The Vegetation

03-09-23 note: I reformatted this, and I was gonna get rid of it but I just couldn't. don't know if I'll continue it anymore, but maybe. :D  
  
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Title: Lost and Found (1/?) Author: sourfall Email: biznitch@ crispytomato.net Category: Luke/Mara romance, humour Keywords: Luke, Mara, romance, humor Spoilers: Thrawn Trilogy Rating: PG (just for star wars curses. possibly PG-13 in later chapters.)  
  
Summary: Luke and Mara embark on an unusual journey and of course, things go awry. Disclaimer: The fabulous Mara Jade belongs to Timothy Zahn, Luke Skywalker belongs to God Lucas and all that is Star Wars does also. Not making any money from this. blah blah blah.  
  
Author's Note: Well, the landlords were throwing a party, I had earplugs. What was I to do? This is my first SW fic, so. be nice? Feedback is good, very good. Next chapter coming soon, if anyone likes this one. On with it!  
  
******* Unknown Planet, Outer Rim 18:39 Coruscant Time  
  
"It's not really all that bad, Mara." Luke braced himself against her massively angry Force-presence.  
  
"Like sithballs it's not! Don't even try that optimism, bright-side crap with me, Skywalker! Save it for the rancors I feed your Jedi ass to!" Mara all but screeched.  
  
"But if we just had a new coolant line and attached it to-" Luke was paralyzed by her glare.  
  
"Look around. Do you see a spaceport? No. So we're not gonna find a coolant line and whatever else you need," she whispered through clenched teeth, "So shut up and haul some ass!"  
  
Luke winced. Her voice could shatter transparisteel.  
  
"Did you hear me, Skywalker?!" //The understatement of the year//, Luke thought as he obeyed and walked faster through the dense bushes.  
  
"Brings back such lovely memories, doesn't it? Trekking through a sort of forest and-" Cut off again.  
  
"Oh, yes, just wonderful, sithridden memories! Blast. I wish I would have killed you then so you wouldn't have had the chance to talk me into this crazy trip, mission, whatever." Mara realized she'd forgotten to breathe and made it up to her lungs by wheezing.  
  
"Hey, you didn't have to come. I only proposed to idea." Luke felt daring tonight, obviously, or he hurt his head more than he thought in the plummet from the atmosphere.  
  
"You played on my natural curiosity! Of course I couldn't refuse, you hothfrost Jedi," she growled.  
  
"Anyway, I managed to salvage some ration bars from the ship before it, um. crashed and." Luke took a glance back at the smoldering wreck, "died."  
  
Mara stared at Luke in complete and utter disbelief. "I don't believe it," she muttered. "You were thinking about food while we were plummeting to our deaths?"  
  
Luke blinked, eyes wide. "Yeah. What were you thinking about?" he asked as if food was the only possible thing to think about at a time like that.  
  
"Um, maybe trying not to die!" Mara threw her arms up in desperation. "And great, there's nothing for miles except these blasted tall bushes." She kicked one of the green, knee-high bushes absent-mindedly.  
  
"Don't abuse the vegetation." Yep, Luke was definitely feeling daring tonight.  
  
"Why not?" Mara frowned as if abusing vegetation was the only possible thing to do at a time such as this.  
  
"Because they might have feelings, you know. Some types of plants have been known to express sentient qualities: anger, pain. happiness." Luke tapped into his small reservoir of horticulture knowledge, "And of course there's always the chance they could strike back like the Zeppilian Stingleaf and." he trailed off.  
  
"No." Mara held up her hand dramatically. "Don't even start on carnivorous plantlife. Ugh." "I find it interesting." Mara would swear the great Jedi was pouting.  
  
"Well, I don't want to hear about another way we could die here right now, alright?" she replied while rolling her eyes.  
  
"Fine." Luke was stuffing the ration bars into his bag.  
  
"Skywalker. are you pouting?" Mara kicked another bush.  
  
"Of course not! I mean. no," he replied vehemently. Mara tried not to laugh.  
  
"Whatever you say." She couldn't hold her laughter much longer.  
  
"Well, I'm not." Luke tsked, rolled his eyes skyward, and sighed dramatically.  
  
Mara giggled so hard at his classic midafternoon talk holoprogram behaviour that she fell into the bushes and couldn't get up.  
  
It all happened too fast for Luke. "Mara, where did you go?"  
  
The only reply was unrelenting giggles about half a metre in front of him.  
  
"Mara? Is that you being giddy?" he asked as he walked forward. right onto Mara. The giggles were quickly replaced by a string of curses long enough to use as rock climbing synthrope. "Ah! Mara, I'm sorry-"  
  
"Save your apologies and get off my stomach!" she lifted up her left leg and kicked him off of her.  
  
"Ow!" Luke landed with a hard thud beside her. "That so hurt."  
  
Luke's complaining brought back the memory that caused her gigglefit in the first place and Mara burst out laughing and couldn't stop.  
  
Luke was puzzled as to why she was laughing so hard when he felt the corners of his mouth twitch. //Oh no, it's contagious//, he thought. The sight of her clutching her sides in obvious pain, tears sliding down her purple face, and gasping for breath was too amusing and before Luke knew it, he was in the same position she was.  
  
One Coruscant Hour Later. -  
  
Luke and Mara's fits of laughter had subsided awhile ago and they just lay where they had been, occasionally having a relapse. Mara hadn't realized it had gotten dark while she was dying of laughter. The night on this planet was beautiful. There were so many twinkling stars in the wide-open sky and the light from the moon almost made-  
  
"Wannabite?" Luke interrupted her wistful thoughts by shoving a half-eaten ration bar in her face. Mara turned to see him sitting up, waiting for her answer as her gnawed off another bite and chewed loudly.  
  
"Not since its been mangled by you," Mara replied abrasively. Luke looked truly hurt.  
  
"I was just asking." Luke shrugged and took another bite.  
  
"Are you pouting, Skywalker?" Mara peered at him in the silver moonlight.  
  
Luke sighed. "Must we go through this again?" He grinned while chewing.  
  
"Ew, that's disgusting. Shut your bantha trap," Mara cringed.  
  
Luke grinned wider for the full effect. Mara snorted. After a few seconds, he complied, but Mara was already asleep.  
  
***** end part one. 


	2. Ration Bar Delight

see ch 1 for headers and crap

Author's Notes: Whee! The nice reviews I read earlier made me inspired to write the next chapter, so yay. Here it is. I don't really know where I am headed with this, it's just writing itself.

And… ehhh… I hope this makes sense cause it's 2am. I reread it but um… coffee? SEE?! Anyway, please review and tell me what you think! I'll start working on chapter three tomorrow. =)

--)

Mara awoke with her eyes skyward. As soon as she opened them, she wished she hadn't as she found herself staring directly into the second sun. //Fabulous, now I'm blind// she thought while squinting and sitting up. She then realized she was alone in the forest of knee-high, creepy vegetation.

"SKYWALKER?!" she barked shrilly.

He came leaping over several bushes with reasonable skill and skidded to a halt in front of her bewildered gaze.

"Um. Good morning," she said while standing up.

"Yeah. Okay. Anyway, I didn't really have a chance to see what ration bars I grabbed yesterday so-" Luke was cut off.

"Arg! Food this, food that. You'd think you were starving," Mara swatted her hand at him like he was a bug.

"I'm passionate about food, okay? What can I say? Anyway, these ration bars," Luke began again, all business, "I got the incredibly good kind! What luck!" He was practically glowing with glee.

"Wow, great, I really care." Mara rolled her eyes. "So what kind are they?"

Luke jumped about a foot in the air while making a happy sound, "Desertberry Tropical Fruutail!"

"Okaaay. That's great. I'm really glad you got that kind." Mara rolled her eyes yet again.

Luke pouted.

"Don't do that! It makes me laugh and then we'll never get anything done," Mara looked away.

"Why does it make you laugh when I am sad?" Luke said through his hugely exaggerated pout.

"Because you're not. And you look… funny…" Mara tried hard not to look at him.

"I am sad. You insulted food. I am passionate about food. This hurts me," Luke pouted more.

"AHHH! Stop it!" Mara reached out and smacked him – hard. He fell to the ground with a resounding thud.

"Owww! I bit my lip! Thanks a lot, Mara." Luke whined as he got up.

"Then stop pouting!" she exclaimed.

"I can't help it now. My lip is swollen. It will look like I am pouting all the time now. Way to go." Luke pointed out. Mara did not reply, she just smacked herself in the head a few times after realizing this to be true.

"Rar," she growled as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a brown bag made with a flimsy yet strong fibre substance. She poked her fingernails in twice to make eyeholes. "Wear this over your head."

Luke looked at the brown, rectangular bag and then back at Mara. "Um, why?"

"So I don't have to look at you all day!" Mara said as if it were obvious.

"Oh. Well. I'll try it… for you," Luke took the bag and put in over his head. He blinked through the eyeholes… he could see fairly well.

"No, you will wear it. All day. Until that stupid lip heals." She commanded and tried her best not to laugh at his appearance. //He's just too damn weird!// she thought to herself.

It had been an eventful day so far. Luke and Mara had managed to walk all of three kilometres north. Their scenery hadn't changed a bit and it looked like they had several days worth of travel just to reach a small pile of rocks in the distance. Meanwhile, the sun was beating down like a man with a pointy stick, and Luke was getting antsy.

"Maraaaaa… it's getting hooot in this baaaag…" Luke slumped his shoulders and whined for effect.

"Stuff it! I really don't care!" Mara hushed him for the third time in as many minutes.

"Yes, you do. You care about me." Luke said simply.

"No, I do not. So shut your mouth and keep walking, farmboy," Mara snapped.

He was right though. As much as she didn't like to admit it, she cared about Luke Skywalker. She didn't like him enough to be friends with him, gods no, of course not, but she did still care about him in some capacity… //Which is still too much.// she scolded herself, //Arg. He's so annoying. How could I possibly care about him? He's too… moral and good. It bothers me. I could never like him. LIKE HIM! Ah. I mean care about him. A little. Not like… But then again…//

Luke only looked on in confusion as Mara smacked herself in the head and mumbled, "Idiot!" to herself. She had issues, he knew, but she had strange ways of dealing with them. He kept walking…

The night had fallen before Luke did, making getting up that much more difficult. He hated his new shoes; they needed to be broken in more. He grunted as he got up again, righted his bag mask, and called after Mara to wait up.

//Hmm. He does have a nice ass, though… AH WAIT. I wasn't supposed to think that! EW EW EW. No. I do NOT, I repeat, DO NOT, like Luke Skywalker, nor do I think he is sexy. NO! Ah…! I'm here accompanying him on a mission for the New Republic, nothing more. I am not here because I like him… WHICH I DON'T!// Mara was fighting an internal battle and didn't even notice Luke yelling at her to slow down.

Why wasn't she hearing him? Did she have vegetation in her ears or something? "Maraaaa!" Luke called again, "SLOW DOWN! I fell and now my shoe is twisted!" She carried on walking. "MAAAAAARRRAAA!"

The sound of Luke screeching her name broke her thoughtful condition. "AH! What the hell are you yelling for, Skywalker?" Mara paused and looked around. "Skywalker? Yoo-hoo, farmboy…?"

"OVER. HERE!" he screamed from way behind her.

"Well, what the hell are you doing way over there? Move it!" Mara snapped and rolled her eyes. Some people could be so incapable.

Luke tsked and rolled his eyes, almost unconsciously, as he tried to move faster through the dense bushes. His efforts were in vain, however, it was impossible to walk at a reasonable pace when your new AstroFly walking shoe was twisted and disfigured around your foot! Honestly, why did they call them walking shoes when they do not compensate for such events as a fall? //Or maybe I'm clumsier than the average Jedi.//

"MARA. I can't move any faster! My shoe is twisted! Just wait for me to catch up!" he yelled at Mara, whose figure was slowly disappearing from sight.

"UGH!" was her reply. "FINE, you blasted Jedi. Can't you just fly yourself over here?"

Well, of course! Luke hadn't thought of that. //I suppose being a Jedi doesn't increase your brainpower all that much.// Luke pondered. He reached out with the Force and lifted himself into the air, gliding over to where Mara stood waiting for him.

"ABOUT TIME," she smacked him for effect. "You wasted a cargoload of time, Skywalker, so now we'll never get to that pile of mysterious rocks in the distance."

"Don't be so dramatic. Of course we will… just not today. And I don't feel anything from the Force that suggests those rocks are anything more than habitats for some nasty looking bugs. … I don't know about you, but I'm starved." And with that, Luke punched a mouth hole in his bagmask and began munching contentedly on a Desertberry Tropical Fruutail ration bar.

Mara stared at him blankly before sitting down and reluctantly consuming a ration bar as well. "So why do you like food so much?"

"Because it tastes good." Luke replied, fully immersed in his ration bar.

"I would have thought the all-knowing Jedi Master Skywalker would have a more profound reason, but alright… stranger things have happened." Mara shrugged. "Hey… these are actually pretty good…"

Before she knew it, Mara Jade had eaten four of the succulent ration bars and night had darkened its presence to almost pitch black. Mara stretched out and thought of what tomorrow would be like, making a mental plan of their estimated progress. They should reach the rocks sometime before Coruscant noon. She fell asleep almost instantly, dreaming of what that pile of semi-conspicuous rocks might mean.


	3. All Good Bunkers Are Made Of Concrete

see ch 1 for headers n' crap.

Author's Notes: Oh, glee. Tonight it's only 1am so I might be a little more sane. One could only hope. Anyway, here goes…

Ooh, and I loooove reviews. Thanks for the great comments, guys. =)

Oh, I have a plan for an upcoming chapter already. It's gonna be a doozy! It's…. interesting. Anyway, on with it.

------)

Morning had been typical. Or as typical as it got with a slightly eccentric Jedi Master who liked ration bars far more than any sane person would. Although, Mara preferred having a ration bar in her line of vision as opposed to the sun. But she didn't like being woken up by one.

"MARA!" Luke squealed with pent-up excitement, as if he had been wanting to tell her for so long, but didn't want to wake her up. //Well, so much for that.// Mara thought.

"WHAT… do you want, Skywalker?" Mara snarled, angry at having her precious sleep disturbed.

"Something amazing has happened!" Luke sprung into the air and tilted his head sideways in midair, much resembling a whale jumping out of the ocean.

"Does it have to do with that ration bar?" Mara inquired, pointing at the nicely wrapped foodstuff lying beside her head.

"Yes!" Luke jumped again.

"Well, then, I don't want to hear it," she paused, "And stop jumping! You're making me dizzy."

"MMMMMKAY!" Luke tried not to jump, but Mara could see him standing on his toes as compensation.

"Rar." Mara hungrily tore into the ration bar beside her head and began eating it. As soon as Luke noticed, he let out a high-pitched scream roughly resembling, "NOOOO!".

"What?" Mara asked, taking another bite.

Luke rushed into action. He reached out and snatched the ration bar away from her and cradled it in his arms like a baby.

"You can't eat this one! It's special," Luke sniffed and stuck his nose in the air. Then looked at her disgustedly.

"Oh, really," Mara said dryly, "Well, do tell, how special is it?"

"Very." was Luke's only answer.

"Care to elaborate?" Mara prodded.

"No, not really. But now you're on my black list," Luke informed her.

"And why is that?" Mara rolled her eyes, tiring of Luke's uninformative answers.

"Because you ate a sentient being!" Luke exclaimed, as if stating the obvious.

Mara stared at him blankly.

"Ohhh… I didn't tell you… right… ummm… well… This ration bar is special because it's made from crushed, slow-roasted Ewok," Luke explained while petting the ration bar, as if it were alive.

"Oh, I thought it tasted familiar," Mara said, without a hint she was joking.

Luke looked at her in pure disgust. "You… you… ANIMAL, you!"

"Yes, I am an animal. So is every other species in this galaxy. Anyway, if it's alright with you, I'd like to go investigate those rocks while there's still daylight left," Mara looked at her nails, frowning. //I really need to file these.//

Luke just stood where he was, staring at her. Not believing even the ex-Emperor's Hand could be so cruel as to eat a little Ewok for breakfast. Sure, the things got annoying after awhile, but surely eating them wasn't the answer?

"Move it, Skydork! We have work to do!" Mara hurried him.

"Heyyyy, are you insulting me?!" Luke furrowed his eyebrows. Sometimes all this thinking could be SO overwhelming.

"Yes and no. HURRY UP, Ewokhugger!" Mara yelled louder this time.

"Okay, okay…" Luke mumbled, running after her.

-- Two Coruscant Hours Later --

Luke and Mara had finally reached the mysterious if not downright spooky rock formation. Luke was less than overjoyed, but Mara was completely ecstatic. She was glad to have something to investigate other than the evil sith-bushes which seemed to cover the entire planet.

"Oooh! Luke, c'mere! Look at this!" Now it was Mara jumping up and down in excitement.

Luke obeyed and peered at what she was pointing at: a small, red bug climbing on the giant rock formation. "WOW. A BUG! FABULOUS. I really missed seeing creepy things since we got here! Great work, Mara." He said sarcastically.

"Oh, shut your mouth. At least it's a sign of life," she stated.

"Oh, ho ho! A sign of life. Wonderful. I came all the way here to look for signs of life!" Luke rolled his eyes.

"Actually, we did, really." Mara pointed out.

"How so?" Luke crossed his arms smugly.

"Our mission, remember? We're here on behalf of the New Republic to forge an alliance with any native peoples and simultaneously find a mysterious flower or plant that reputably grows here in extremely rare quantities to bring back for scientific study," Mara summarized their mission file.

"Oh, right! I forgot all about that!" Luke's eyes lit up with the prospect of exploring ahead of them.

"Only you could forget about a mission directly given to you by your sister, Princess High and Mighty herself," Mara snorted.

"Only I can do many things," Luke nudged her.

"Are you coming on to me, Skywalker?" Mara's tone was less than inviting.

"Maybe… maybe not…" Luke attempted to be cute.

"Well, suck it. I'm here with you on a mission, not a romantic little getaway, okay?" Mara nudged him back. Well, it was more of a shove.

"OW! Stop hurting things! First the vegetation, then a poor, roasted Ewok, and now me! Hmm… Maybe I should just tie you up before you can do anymore damage…" Luke raised his eyebrows once, then twice.

"Rar!" Mara smacked him in the arm and rolled her eyes.

While her eyes were orbiting, they caught sight of something interesting. She stopped and investigated further. The soil in this part was darker than the soil around it. Like it had been overturned recently… It was also in a perfect square shape… How interesting… She poked it, and was surprised to find her finger land on something hard. Mara brushed the soil away quickly, revealing a metal trapdoor.

"LUKE! LOOK!" she yelled at him, even though he was right beside her. "I think we should investigate this."

"Well, of course," Luke rolled his eyes for emphasis.

"Mara opened the trapdoor and peeked inside cautiously. No reason to be reckless, after all. After estimating that the ground of this underground cavern was only about a four metre drop, she sat down along the edge of the opening and jumped down. She landed on her feet while her knees protested this sudden landing. Luke followed her, except he landed on his ass. Some comments worthy of the Dark Side followed.

"Well, what now?" Luke shrugged, getting up on his feet.

"We explore," Mara smiled, the prospect of an interesting place filled with dirt just rattled her mind with glee.

Luke and Mara headed toward the darkness of the cave, not being able to see more than a few centimetres in front of them. Mara's head was spinning with ideas as to what this place could be for. A hiding bunker? An attack bunker? A food-storage bunker? Why couldn't she get bunkers off her mind?

Luke wasn't really thinking about the cave. He was trying to navigate mostly. Even his incredible Jedi powers seemed to limit his ability to see in this dark place. Which might explain how he ran into a wall made of concrete.

"Oh, sith!" Luke exclaimed, rubbing his nose.

Mara giggled at him.

"Oh, stop it. It was an accident. I'm not all-powerful, you know… and caves aren't my thing. … I said stop laughing!" Luke grumpily began walking the other way.

Of course! All good bunkers are made of concrete. Mara chastised herself for not realizing this sooner. Good thing it wasn't her who ran into the wall. She laughed at Luke's misfortune… and plain idiocy.

Her thoughts turned more serious as she realized another thing. The trapdoor had closed itself after them, as if of its own volition… Well, that was a creepy thought. Mara swallowed and continued mentally scanning the bunker. She hoped they would find a door or something soon, this was getting tedious.

She also hoped they wouldn't run out of air down here. She'd hate to die on a backwater planet, much less in a dark concrete bunker… also on a backwater planet! And one filled with strange vegetation… Mara sighed. It was going to be another long afternoon.

---)

end ch three. I promise chapter four will be more interesting. I'll try to get it up soon. Thanks for reading! =)


	4. Save The Pastry At All Costs

Oi. You should know me by now. Yes, this is another wee hour offer. It is currently 3am. Sanity has been abandoned and I am angry because my download of Warcraft 2 didn't work because apparently, you must have the CD to play it. WELL LA DEE DAH. I've been wanting to write this part for awhile now, oooooh, so fun. So enjoy and all that stuff.

And it makes me gleeful when I receive reviews… hint hint…

Oh, and I don't know what's gotten into Luke. I made him all stupid and lazy. Ha ha ha. Ehhh… his Jedi powers come into effect only at certain times… yes, that's it. When I write them in. Muahaha. Anyway. On with the show…

-------------------)

Mara had spent close to a Coruscant hour trying to find a door in the almost pitch-black bunker. Luke simply sat on the floor and drew random patterns in the dirt. Jedi Masters are so useful in times of crisis, now aren't they?

"So what are you doing again?" Luke asked while humming mindlessly.

"Looking for a way out of this room! Obviously." If she were within range, Mara would have slapped him.

"Like a door?" Luke pondered.

"Yes, of course like a door! What else?" Mara snarled.

"Ohhh, well why didn't you say so! There's one over there on the left," Luke pointed for further emphasis.

"How long have you known about that door?" Mara demanded as she walked over to examine it. It was indeed a door, carefully painted to precisely match the concrete walls.

"About three quarters of an hour. Why?" Luke blinked innocently.

"Because it could have saved me a lot of time! Ugh, useless Jedi. Well, at least get your ass over here and open it!" Mara threw her hands up in an 'I-Don't-Believe-This' expression.

"Mmmmmkay!" Luke said cheerfully and got up. He proceeded to stand across the room, in a direct line from the door.

"What are you doing?" Mara sighed, knowing the answer.

"I'm going to ram it!" Luke said excitedly, as if this was the most wondrous thing in the world.

"Skywalker, try the handle first…" Mara pointed to a handle midway down.

"No. This is more fun. Let's pretend the handle didn't work, okay?" Luke glowed with excitement.

"Ugh," Mara rolled her eyes at his male immaturity and answered with sarcasm, "FINE. Whatever you say, great Master Skywalker." 

"Yay!" Luke jumped like a whale from the ocean again, and then noticeably calmed and focused. Reaching out with the Force, he charged at the door. "Chargie, chargie!" He let out a … ferocious battle cry.

Mara yawned as he darted past her, into the door and crashing through it. She heard him land in the next room with a loud thud, and then a smack as the door broke with his weight on it. She also heard shocked gasps of astonishment and fear from at least ten beings in the room. Seemingly human. She entered the room.

"Please! We did nothing! Why do you wish to fight us?" a middle-aged man who had the air of leadership asked them, stepping out from the rest of his people. He was dressed in a charcoal grey business suit of foreign design, which was quite complimentary to his obvious superiority.

"We don't wish to fight you at all. We were sent here by the New Republic to talk to you. We don't want to hurt you at all," Luke remembered the words Leia told him to say in a situation such as this.

"You could have knocked!" a young man in baggy, white pants with strange stripes down the sides blurted out sarcastically while adjusting his white t-shirt. Very casual… interesting…

"I am quite partial to ramming," Luke said in all seriousness, as if this was the proper way to enter a room.

"What my friend here means is that we weren't aware of your presence here," Mara shot Luke a 'You-Should-Have-Known,-Jedi' look, then added hesitantly, "and the handle wouldn't work."

"It should be fine. This room was used just a few hours ago." the middle-aged leader informed her.

"Well, it doesn't," Mara's tone told everyone to drop the subject.

"Anyway, why are you down here instead of on the surface?" Luke inquired casually.

"We are in hiding from the Cave Demon who has been plaguing us this year with many deaths. The Demon cannot get to us here. We think this strange stone stops his mental energy from being cast upon us," the leader explained.

"Really, now." Luke was very interested in all of this. "And where does this Cave Demon live?"

"In the caves," was the reply.

"Oh. Right." Luke blinked. There was a moment of silence.

//Skywalker! Use your head! You're making us look stupid.// Mara sent to him, telepathically.

"So, I'm Luke Skywalker, Jedi Master," a pause for effect, "and this is Mara Jade." Luke wasn't quite sure what to list her profession as, so he left it out. Assassin wouldn't sound too good.

"We are glad to meet you, seeing as how you have no intention of hurting us. I am David Baker, leader of this colony. This is my legislative body, and my son over there who tagged along," David pointed to the white-pants man in the corner, "Would you like me to take you to our colony central?"

"Uhh, yes, that would be very kind of you, thank you," Luke nodded and smiled to show diplomacy.

Mara followed David down a dimly lit, stale-smelling passageway, Luke behind her and the legislative body behind him. It was quite a long, uncomfortable trip but soon enough they arrived at a small but busy medieval-looking town. In the centre of a group of stone houses, a wrought-iron statue stood, almost as tall as a person. It was a compass, with a bird in the centre. It was a very skilled piece of metalwork for a primitive human colony. Impressive.

Upon their arrival, villagers stopped what they were doing and stared at the otherworldly guests. Not stares of fear, only awe and curiosity. A short distance away, Mara could hear livestock making normal livestock sounds and the rustle of hay being trampled as villagers walked towards them over the ground. They hay was randomly spread across the ground, as if it had fallen out of people's arms as they carried it.

All the peasants were dressed in brown-hued robes that were slightly dirty from constant wear. Their hair was disheveled and most had faces full of dirt from a long day's work in the field. Everyone grew silent as the leader stepped into the centre of town, motioning for Luke and Mara to accompany him.

"People of Hondac, hear me! These two have traveled to us from the heavens above and bring peace and curiosity with them. They are friendly and are to be treated the same by all in this village. You will answer any questions they have politely and completely. They are to be trusted and respected. Is this clear?" David asked of the crowd. A murmur of acknowledgement was audibly heard from everyone present.

"Good. Please carry about what you were doing before. Have a nice day," David concluded his speech and everyone went back to what they were doing, without a second glance at Luke or Mara, just quietly chattering amongst themselves.

"Um… okay. That was a bit weird." Mara observed.

"Yes, I agree. These people are definitely medieval. It seems safe enough here though; I don't sense any deceit from David or anyone else. I'm rather interested in this Cave Demon incident though," Luke said.

"So am I. And why are you just now sobering up from your giddy and idiotical state ever since we landed here and actually thinking?" Mara asked him.

"Maybe a head injury healed? No, I'm joking. I was just joking around before because I was bored. Now since there's something to concentrate on, I'm at my full Jedi alertness," Luke told her.

"Good to know," Mara said while taking in their surroundings in more detail.

"You know, as curious as I am about this Cave Demon business, I think it'd be best to get some sleep. It's late, and I'm beat." Luke really was tired. He knew he wasn't up to exploring a cave filled with an ominous opponent he knew nothing about.

"Yeah, I suppose," Mara said, not mentioning that she was completely exhausted as well, "Let's find somewhere to spend the night." She yawned.

"Good idea." Luke agreed.

They walked around the village searching for such a suitable place. Nobody bothered them, but Luke could see several of them glance at them when they didn't think he was looking. He could sense their natural curiosity as well. A friendly bunch, they were.

After about 15 minutes of walking, Mara spotted a small, abandoned barn up ahead. Assuming there would be nice, comfy hay inside, she suggested it as their resting place for the night. Luke hastily agreed; he was falling asleep on his feet.

Once inside, Mara discovered her hunch to be correct. There was indeed lots of hay inside. The smell wasn't all that pleasant, something she didn't quite recognize, but it was alright. She noticed a small loft up on one side and began climbing up the ladder to the seemingly comfy spot. She was surprised when Luke began climbing up after her.

"Hey, this is my spot, go find your own," Mara pushed him off the ladder, into a pile of hay.

"UGH. Fine, then." Luke found the hay he landed in quite comfy anyway. He claimed it as his bed then promptly fell asleep.

Mara climbed up to her lovely loft and stretched out. It was surprisingly comfortable for a wooden floor with only an inch of hay on it. Really, really comfortable in fact. Maybe a little more than it should be… But now wasn't the time to worry about such silly things, she told herself. Now, she would get some rest and tomorrow they would debunk this Cave Demon situation.

Yes, sleep. Sleep was good. And fast-approaching. Just as Mara slipped into a nice, deep sleep, a still-functioning part of her brain thought it heard a cackle nearby. The rest of her sleepy brain assured the renegade alert part it was just a figment of her imagination.

And she was out like the Force in a yslarmi bubble.

--) A Few Hours Later (--

She was alone in the dark Imperial Star Destroyer command room. The Emperor's personalized control centre, where he ruled his galaxy and exacted punishment on those inferiors. Her Master had ordered her to meet him here shortly, and she knew he always expected her to arrive before he did. It was alright for her to wait, but the Emperor could never be kept waiting. Never. Or horrible things could happen to the dairy industry, and that was a sacrifice Mara Jade was not ready to make.

"Greetings, my Hand!" Emperor Palpatine called to her from the shadows where he had just arrived, "I trust all is well with you tonight?"

"Yes, Master, everything is splendid." Mara replied.

"Good! Now, I have called you here to teach you something. This skill you will learn will prove to be useful to you in the future, I guarantee it. You must master this skill and use it whenever necessary. I have brought along Darth Vader to help instruct you. This is a massive skill to learn, but I know you can do it, my Hand." Palpatine grinned evilly and a gleeful laugh escaped his fangs.

"I will learn whatever you wish, Master," she bowed respectfully.

"Oh, you are so good! Now, stand over here in the middle of the room. DARTH! Move it! We don't have all night!" Palpatine called to his second-in-command, "Uh. That man is certainly skilled but he has the speed of an unconscious bantha."

A breathing sound signaled Vader's arrival. Mara had moved to where her Master indicated, in the only light spot in the entire room. Palpatine and Vader were still hidden by shadows, only faces distinguishable from the standby lights on the control panel across the room.

"Now. What you are going to learn is called…" Palpatine paused, then turned to Vader, who was standing beside the control panel, "HIT IT!"

Vader flipped a switch on the control panel and stepped to Palpatine's left side. Just as he stopped walking, soft music filled the command centre.

"… BALLET!" Palpatine finished his earlier sentence.

Palpatine and Vader then stepped into the light and Mara could see they were both wearing poofy, pink dress-like things around their waists. The both had white stockings and white, silky shoes that looked more like slippers on. Mara was horrified. At least she thought she was…

And then they started dancing. Palpatine did a graceful twirl and stood up on his toes, then fell to the side like a blade of grass. Vader caught him and they skipped around the room, twirling and pointing their toes at random intervals. This was true horror. Mara ran from the command centre as fast as she could, screaming her lungs off all the way back to her quarters.

Mara awoke with a start. //WAS THAT REAL?// she thought for a panic-stricken second. But then, no, it wasn't. She recognized the barn and hay… this was not her quarters aboard the 'Die Now', Palpatine's flagship. What a weird dream. It seemed so real… Mara was just glad it wasn't real. Palpatine is dead, Vader is too. They did not do ballet. Mara shook the last of the strange and horrifying dream from her head and drifted back to sleep.

--) Meanwhile… (---

Luke had heard Master Yoda mentally calling him through the Force. Yoda had told Luke to meet him in his cave on Dagobah. His mental tone sounded serious and had the sound of a being who had just made a huge decision, one with consequences. Luke was worried. Worried about what this impromptu meeting was all about, what Yoda was so serious about, but most of all Luke was worried about what would become of his breakfast pastry now that he was forced to abandon it. Would someone pick it up? Devour it like hungriness had never left them? Or would they just toss it out as garbage?! The thoughts were endless and horrifying.

//I've got a job to do, I have to stop thinking about food!// he told himself sternly. There was a proper time to think about food, and a time to think about what was to be done. Somehow, the line between the two was blurred in Luke's mind.

He decided he could not leave the poor pastry alone in the Imperial Palace cafeteria, it was too dangerous for the succulent treat. It was sure to fall in enemy hands. Luke picked it up, looked around conspicuously, and slipped it in his left flightsuit pocket. His conscious felt better already, knowing he had saved the pastry from an ominous doom – the trash bin.

Luke found Artoo, tore him away from playing a video game, and shoved him into the X-Wing socket. He did the preflight procedure and took off, all within ten minutes. Impressive. Almost as impressive as his rescue of the pastry not ten minutes before… //NO. This is not a food time!// Luke shook his head, trying to clear thoughts of food from it. After a few minutes, he was successful.

Upon arriving on Dagobah, Luke could sense a difference in the atmosphere. It was… darker than it had been before, if that was possible. The cave seemed to glow of darkness. Luke ventured in, knowing Yoda knew of his arrival and would fend off unnecessary challenges with the Force for maximum efficiency.

Luke cleared the maze of twisting tunnels and entered Yoda's chamber. He was sitting in front of a small fire, eyes closed, as if meditating. Luke stepped forward a few more feet. Nothing. Luke eventually lost patience and poked Yoda on the shoulder.

"Wakey, wakey!" Luke called.

Yoda's eyes snapped open and he fell on his back from surprise. //Getting rusty at this, I am!// he thought. He scratched his head and welcomed Luke.

"Come so far, you have. Tell you information, I must. Know the future, you will!" Yoda jabbered excitedly.

"Erm… okay…" Luke hesitantly agreed to "know the future".

"Eyes, close your. Download information to you, I will!" Yoda was holding an electronic plug in his hand.

"But I'm not a droid. That won't-" Luke started to say.

"Quiet, you will be! Trust in me, you will have." Yoda nodded and told Luke to close his eyes again. Luke complied.

Yoda touched the electronic plug to Luke's head, and instantly he was aware of a strange sensation in his head as information copied itself into unused storage space in his mind. //This is certainly effective!// Luke thought.

"Effective, it very much is!" Yoda agreed. "Done now, I am. Leave now, you will."

Instantly, Luke was outside, standing beside his X-Wing with Artoo already in the droid socket. He stood there bewildered for a moment. He tried to access his new knowledge, only to be asked for a password. The command showed up behind his eyes. //What the Hoth?! It's like a droid interface!// Luke was panicking. Yoda had turned him into a droid! A manbot! This was horrible. How could he reverse this? //Aaaahhhhh!// Luke's electronic scream filtered through his mind, shaking every part of his brain like a metal circuitboard.

Luke awoke, breathing hard. He touched his head and tried thinking of something in his mind. No password command. No electronic-sounding voice. He was in the barn, in his bed of hay. It was all just a bad dream. He sighed audibly, then stretched out a bit for a more comfortable position. His arm hit something hard. //Hmm, that's funny, I don't remember a wall being there before. No, wait, it's squishy… like…// Luke paused his mental train of thought and glanced half-behind him. Mara was lying beside him, sleeping peacefully. //What the Hoth?// Luke exclaimed mentally.

He looked around. No, he was not in his hay-bed; he was in Mara's! Somehow, he had climbed up into the loft. //How strange!// Luke was puzzled. Oh, well, now wasn't the time for such deep thinking, he was tired. He shrugged and moved closer to Mara. She was like a teddy bear. //I could get used to this…// Luke drifted off to sleep with a dopey grin plastered on his face.

Not far away, the Cave Demon opened his oblique eyes. Yes, everything was going according to plan. These two were more than subconsciously willing to partake in his agenda, whether they realized it or not. Yes, this one would be easy.

The Cave Demon put up another tally mark under the "Success" column and drifted off to sleep. It had been a long day, and tomorrow would require much mental energy. He was looking forward to it. With that last thought, the Cave Demon began snoring, his subconscience eager for the dawn of a new day.

----------)

Um, yes, so like it? Review pleeeease, oh, how I love reviews! Hopefully, I'll get to write more tomorrow. I think maybe three more chapters maximum. Hmm. We'll see. For now, I'm going to bed. =)


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